


Hello, Pink Sky

by skywxxrds



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Fluff, Gen, Kid Fic, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-18
Updated: 2017-12-18
Packaged: 2019-02-16 14:53:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,010
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13056261
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/skywxxrds/pseuds/skywxxrds
Summary: Young Yifan has just recently moved to Seoul and is being introduced to a Day Care Center where he could spend his days learning and playing with children of his age instead of being alone at home when his mom is away for work. Among the eleven other children, there is one friend who gives him new experiences and new feelings…





	Hello, Pink Sky

**Author's Note:**

> This is a long overdue birthday present for Kirahnyan ♥ Sorry this is three years (and a month) late. You know that I struggled a lot with writing kids in the past years but I don’t know what got into me that I managed to have fun after surpassing the 1.5k mark. So I hope you’ll like this as much as I had fun writing it ^^ Belated happy birthday!
> 
> My heartfelt gratitude to Rey, my most patient and supportive beta, who had given me fresh and adorable reactions from every reading done. If not for you, I would’ve just hastily posted this. You’re the best person I could consult this with. Stay awesome as you are~
> 
> To my tiny, shining stars, it’s been a long time since I’ve last shared something, so I thank you for the love and support until now.
> 
> I suck at writing summaries, sorry about that. Anyway, basically this is a kid!AU. I don’t know if I can declare Yifan and Junmyeon’s relationship here as Romance, because I tried my best to portray a sweet Puppy Love. ChangKyu here were supposed to be a pair, but I don’t think I managed to develop their relationship well. Nonetheless, I had fun writing this.
> 
> Disclaimer: No children were harmed in the making of this fic.  
>   
> 

Two pairs of boot prints mark the white sands, leaving two trails following Yifan’s tiny steps. One trail is made by his own small feet, while the other is made by huge ones double the size of his own. Unlike the rough, grainy sands on the beach, these white sands are rather soft yet cold, and they seem to melt under Yifan’s soles. Nonetheless, the boot prints don’t melt as fast as the sea erases footprints in the sand.

Compared to the beach, where the breeze is cool and the sun’s rays make everything sparkle, the place surrounding Yifan is covered in a vast sheet of white. Picket fences are covered in white, soft sand. The leaves of the trees are covered in white, soft sand. Even the pavement is covered in white, soft sand.

“It’s not sand, Yifan,” his mother chuckles, to his bewilderment. “It’s called _snow_.”

Snow happens in winter; and winter is the season before spring and summer, his mother explains, urging him to open his mittened hands to catch the falling snow. They cling to the fabric without melting, and Yifan ogles their patterns before smiling at his mother. She then squeezes his hand gently, trapping the flakes between their hands and they continue walking down the concrete road covered in snow.

The looming gray clouds at the sky sprinkle the road slowly with tiny white flakes, determined to tuck the earth under a thicker blanket of white. Yifan discovers, after accidentally stepping on one, that these flakes crumble into white sand—or rather, the snow that his mother termed.

Yifan clings to his mother, gripping her hand a little bit too tightly with both of his own little ones, gently tugging it. His mother bends down, smiling at him. He sees his own nervous pair of eyes being reflected upon her calm, hazel irises.

“Don’t worry, baby. You’ll be meeting kids around your age, it’ll be fun!” she convinces him in a delighted voice.

From not so far away, Yifan spots a young man walking towards their direction. Upon reaching them, he bows down, and greets Yifan’s mother in a language that is unfamiliar to Yifan’s ears. The young man and his mother are engaged in a discussion, and Yifan does not understand a single word because they’re speaking way too fast. The young man’s voice seems to resonate then settle deep inside Yifan’s chest. There is gentleness in the way he speaks—although Yifan claims it’s not as gentle as his mother’s.

Yifan blinks before turning towards the tall man in front of him once more. He studies the young man’s features carefully. Yifan finds him friendly, with that warm smile on his face. He is taller than his mother, and Yifan wonders if he’ll ever grow as tall as this young man. The man’s face seems younger than his mother’s; and the circles under his eyes not as dark as his mother’s.

“Yifan, _annyeong_!” The young man greets, smile still alight on his face.

Unfamiliar with the word, Yifan looks back at his mother and tugs her hand again, asking in a shy voice, “But why?”

Lifting him up, his mother answers, “Mommy will be working during the day from now on and there’d be nobody to look after you so Mommy thinks it’s best that you stay here during the day.”

There’s a short pause before Yifan blinks once and his mother lets out a chuckle. “And besides, it’ll be great if you get to make new friends here. Don’t worry, baby, Mommy will fetch you at the end of the day!”

The young man interrupts their conversation, although Yifan still doesn’t understand a single word he is saying. Sensing how confused Yifan is, he switches to a language Yifan understands, “You are in good hands, Yifan. I’ll take care of you. It’ll be fun!”

“Baby, meet your Kyuhyun hyung,” his mother says. “He'll be taking care of you while Mommy will be busy at work.”

“ _Hyung_?”

“It means ‘big brother’ in Korean.”

Yifan blinks one more time as if asking her a silent question.

“Don’t worry, baby. Kyuhyun hyung knows how to speak Chinese so there’s no problem if you aren’t so confident with your Korean,” she smiles.

“ _Ni hao_ , Yifan,” the young man introduces as Kyuhyun greets him once more. “I’m your Kyuhyun hyung. It’s nice to meet you,” Kyuhyun says in Chinese, although Yifan thinks his accent is a bit off. Kyuhyun stretches his hand out to him, which Yifan stares at for a few seconds.

“Come on now, baby. Be nice,” his mother prods.

“ _Ni hao_ , Kyuhyun hyung. I’m Wu Yifan," he says as he reaches for Kyuhyun’s outstretched hand. The young man wraps his slender fingers around the child’s tiny hand and he shakes it lightly.

“Please guide me well,” Yifan says in Korean, every word exerted with full effort.

“Yes, please take good care of him. I entrust him to you,” Yifan’s mother adds.

“I’ll do my best, ma’am," he bows as he answers.

“Mommy’s gonna go now,” Yifan’s mother says. “Enjoy your first day!”

Reluctant to let her go, Yifan hugs her tight and gives her a kiss on the cheek.

 

* * *

 

It so happens that this is also Yifan’s first day at this place called… the _Day Care Center_. There are about twelve children, including him. Among them, there are three other Chinese kids, but since they have been here longer than him, Yifan is still having a hard time mingling with them. And they seem to be a rowdy lot too.

A certain Lu Han, who sports a deer patch on his shirt, is always with the listless-looking child named Sehun, who clings to him more than Yifan clings to his mom, and the sleepy-looking child named Jongin, who follows them both wherever they go. This Sehun is easily appeased when Lu Han brings him bubble tea, whereas the bronze-skinned boy Jongin is invariably contented napping at the corner where the three of them are hanging out—his ears must’ve automatically cancelled the yelling and shouting of the other kids and Yifan finds this quite impressive. He ought to learn how to do that from this child. Another Chinese kid named Zitao, whom Yifan likens to a panda because of his eyes, is playing with the talkative Baekhyun and Jongdae. The other kid named Yixing who appears to be airheaded, is surprisingly active when it comes to music, and is currently playing toy guitars and beatboxes with Chanyeol, while Kyungsoo and Minseok sing along with them.

Kyuhyun told him there are twelve of them, but Yifan has yet to meet the remaining one. Since he was too shy, he didn’t bother asking. Instead, he busies himself with a coloring book.

Occasionally, the other kids would come to him to ask a few questions about himself—with the help of the other three Chinese kids translating for him—like where did he come from, how is he related to the other three Chinese kids, why his hair is tied in a half-ponytail, all of which he responds politely. He tries his best to approach the kids and talk in Korean, although the Korean language still feels heavy to his tongue and sometimes he mixes his speech with a little bit of Chinese and English. The kids would often laugh at his tiny mishaps, but Yifan takes no offense and he even thinks they were understanding enough, and soon, they’d join him playing with crayons on coloring books, circling him around the same table.

As the day darkens and the other kids are being fetched by their families one by one, the streetlights come to life and Yifan, being the last kid remaining, quietly waits for his mother to arrive. During this time, Kyuhyun patiently teaches him Korean by naming the things around them. That day he learned that the Korean word for snow and eye is the same, and wonders what could the connection be, though he didn’t get to ask.

The front door opens and the bell chimes, and upon hearing the sweet voice of his mother beckoning him, Yifan dashes to the front door and embraces the warmth of his human home.

 

* * *

 

It is a little past nap time when Yifan wakes up and sees snow outside the window. They’re white, tiny featherlight flakes fluttering about, dancing to a quiet rhythm. He softly rubs the edges of his eyes with his mittens, looks around the nursery to find the other kids snoozing under their blankets.

Jongin seems happy with his hand clutching at Lu Han’s sleeve. Sehun is, of course, beside Lu Han, he is curled up facing the other boy, contented with a little drool at the corner of his mouth. Seeing them beside each other makes Yifan think they’re twins. Minseok has his brows furrowed as three other kids cling to him unconsciously. Chanyeol and Baekhyun seem to be having a contest on who snores the loudest, while Yixing is as stiff as a log inside his sleeping mat.

He gets up and tidies his sleeping mattress. Kyuhyun hyung is nowhere to be found, so he climbs up a chair near the window and settles himself over there. With his hands under his chin, he hums a tune in sync with the snow falling outside. Everything is so amazingly bright white outside, and the snow keeps on piling up everywhere, and there’s a huge ball of snow with a red beanie rolling at the corner of the playground.

Wait, _what_?

Yifan blinks again, this time it’s about three seconds long. He must be seeing things. There is no way a ball of snow could be rolling on its own, let alone have a beanie on top of it! He rubs his eyes one more time, and the ball of snow halts at the corner and much to his relief, a tiny boy whose built is similar to Minseok, emerges from behind it. The boy is wearing the same red beanie Yifan thought was floating atop the snow ball earlier.

He observes the tiny boy quietly, constantly wiping the mist off the glass window with his hand. The ball of snow is almost the size of the tiny boy, and this boy’s face scrunches slightly as he rolls the ball a few inches more from its original place. The boy places his hands on his waist, as if studying his new placement, and then claps his hands happily, satisfied with his arrangement. At the same time, Yifan subconsciously smiles at the boy’s endeavors.

The boy bends down, gathering the snow at his feet and then shaping a small ball with his tiny, gloved hands. Then he stands up straight, turning to the big ball he rolled in place earlier. His stance seems to be like he’s challenging the big snow ball. He approaches it, and struggles to maintain his balance while he attempts to put the smaller ball on top of the big ball.

An idea sparks inside Yifan’s head. Perhaps he should go outside and help him out. But just as he was about to go down from his spot, the little boy loses his balance, toppling head first into huge ball that he diligently created; it has now crumbled and piled on top of him.

The little boy’s head and upper body are pretty much buried in the snow, and the little boy kicks his legs frantically as he struggles to break free. A voice inside Yifan’s head shouts at him to run outside and help the little boy. It takes him a while before he feels the willpower in his legs to finally move from his spot.

When he reaches the door, however, he struggles to reach the door knob. Though the fact is that he is tall for a boy of his age, the knob is still too high for him to reach.

Suddenly, a voice startles him, “Hey there, brave little one. It’s still nap time. What do you plan to do outside? It’s freezing cold out there.”

Yifan ignores the owner of the voice, paying him no heed and continuing to reach for the high doorknob. Right now, his mind is preoccupied with helping the little boy outside. He hears footsteps coming towards him, and sees a shadow growing on the brown surface of the door in front of him. But the image of the tiny boy struggling under the snow outside is the most urgent thing in his mind.

“Changmin, have you seen Junmyeon?” a different voice enters the room. This voice, however is a familiar one and Yifan recognizes it as his Kyuhyun hyung’s.

The footsteps stop and Yifan notices the growing shadow on the surface of the door stopping too. “Come to think of it, no, I haven’t,” the first voice answers, and Yifan senses that the owner is just standing behind him.

Yifan ignores the two males and he goes back to reaching for the knob.

“Where has that troublemaker gone to this time?” Kyuhyun sighs. Upon seeing Yifan by the door, he asks, “Yifan, what are you doing?”

Yifan doesn’t answer him and instead continues to reach for the knob. He can feel Kyuhyun approaching him, maybe he is about to take him away and put him back to his sleeping mattress—it is still nap time after all, to which Yifan silently prays not to happen, because right now, helping the little boy get out of that snow is the most important thing for him to do.

Suddenly, Kyuhyun gasps, “Is that him on the pile of snow I see? Oh my goodness!”

Kyuhyun’s footsteps become faster and louder, charging towards the door. Yifan could have been pushed aside if not for a strong pair of arms lifting him just in time, and his feet loses contact with the ground. Fortunately, that is just the man whom Kyuhyun hyung called Changmin earlier, lifting him out of the way just in time for Kyuhyun to open the door and rush outside. Yifan kicks his legs in the air, signalling the other man to put him down so he can help the little boy he was observing earlier. The young male complies, and Yifan rushes after Kyuhyun, hoping that the tiny boy outside is still breathing.

The cold breeze pricks Yifan’s cheeks the moment he steps outside. Aside from his sweater and socks, he had no coat and proper footwear to protect him from the freezing winter weather. The next thing he sees is Kyuhyun carrying the tiny, flailing boy in his arms, wiping the snow out of the latter’s cheeks with his gloved fingers. The tiny boy has his face wrapped in Kyuhyun’s scarf, his red beanie warming the top of his head.

“What do you think you were doing, Junmyeonnie?” Kyuhyun asks him in a stern voice.

“I was t-t-trying t-t-t-to build a s-s-snowman!” the little boy, whose name is Junmyeon—Yifan assumes—stutters in reply. Most kids would be crying after falling down, but this little boy fell head first, got his upper body buried in freezing snow for a few solid minutes, yet still manages to answer back feistily to Kyuhyun hyung, his tiny gloved fists fighting against the scarf that Kyuhyun is struggling to keep wrapped around his neck.

“But I told you we can do it some other time, it’s so cold and snowing outside!”

“But the weather was almost the same when you built one with Jinki hyung last year!” the little boy pouts, with a hint of jealousy in his voice.

“No buts!” Kyuhyun scolds him. “Today is colder than last year, we’ll do it when it’s safer, alright?”

Kyuhyun had almost shut Yifan out in his attempt to calm a wild Junmyeon who’s still throwing a tantrum. Fortunately for him, there’s Changmin holding the door.

“Ah, so you were heading out to help him, huh. You should’ve told me, right away. I could’ve opened the door for you.”

Yifan lifts his head up to look at the young man’s face. The guy is even taller than Kyuhyun. And after Yifan blinks slowly twice, he gives him a firm smile.

“You better come in now, or you might freeze out there,” he convinces, and Yifan sheepishly complies.

“Hi, you must be Yifan. You can call me Changmin hyung. That little kid whom you were planning to help out was Junmyeon. I think it’s the first time you’re meeting both of us, right?” Changmin introduces, wrapping Yifan with a thick blanket he fetched from the higher parts of a nearby shelf. “He went on a trip with his family on the day you came here, you see. And I was busy with a few things too, but we’re here now.” Changmin tightens the blanket around Yifan, rubbing the boy’s arms to induce heat. “Junmyeonnie is a bit bold for a tiny boy, isn’t he? He always gets to do whatever he wants in a sneaky way.”

Yifan blinks again, slowly processing the information from Changmin’s rapid and lengthy Korean reply.

“Oh, Kyuhyun told me you’re Chinese-Canadian. I’m sorry but I can only speak the basics of Mandarin and English. But if you need help with Korean, I can help you learn. Now, let’s go have some hot chocolate to keep ourselves warm. Let’s go, Yifan,” Changmin says, ushering the little boy back indoors.

The way Changmin says his name felt warm to his ears. He has a feeling he might come to like this hyung.

 

* * *

 

They arrive at the pantry, where Yifan finds Junmyeon on a chair, with two or three blankets wrapped around him, with his head still covered with the red beanie. The tips of his ears and his nose are flushed pink, and by the pout on his face and the way he swings his legs under the table tell Yifan that the boy is still sulking.

Kyuhyun is nowhere inside the room, he must be in another room retrieving some important items.

Changmin lets go of his hand, and gets four mugs from the cupboard. Yifan, being too shy to sit beside Junmyeon, chooses to stand beside Changmin. Patiently, he waits until Changmin has placed spoonfuls of cocoa to each mug and pours hot water into them.

“Could you bring this one to Junmyeonnie, Yifan?” Changmin smiles, handing him a lavender mug with a white bunny print. Yifan quietly nods, taking the mug with both of his mittened hands. “Be careful not to spill it. It’s still hot,” Changmin warns.

Yifan walks slowly to the table, careful not to spill the hot chocolate, heading over to where Junmyeon is, who is still sulking in his seat. Changmin chuckles as he eyes the tall boy who is walking like a penguin in his tracks.

When Yifan sets the mug in front of Junmyeon, the little boy with the red beanie perks up, surprised. “Oh, thank you!” he says, his eyes crinkling as he smiles.

Yifan feels his cheeks warm up and so he runs back to Changmin, who gladly hands him a green mug with a cute, glittering silver dragon on it. He looks up at Changmin before taking it.

“This mug is officially yours, Yifan,” Changmin smiles. “Everyone here has their own mug, and I bought this new one especially for you.” He then ruffles Yifan’s hair. “I know this is a little late, but welcome to the Day Care, Yifan.”

“Th-Thank you!” Yifan bows shyly, and hastily claims his mug of hot cocoa from Changmin. He then returns to the table and sets his mug in front of the seat beside Junmyeon, who has a starry-eyed expression on his face when Yifan turns to look at him after sitting down.

“Whoa!” Yifan exclaims, almost falling off his chair.

“Now, now, Junmyeonnie,” Changmin says, laughing for a second before helping Yifan get back to his seat. “You’re scaring Yifan.”

“Oooooohh. Hello, I’m Junmyeon! What’s your name?” Junmyeon asks, his eyes still wide and eager and Yifan swears they are sparkling in front of him. His face is too close that Yifan starts thinking that the nose in front of him is cute.

“Yi…Yifan,” Yifan answers, bringing his mug to his face to shield his embarrassment from the inquisitive Junmyeon.

“Ee-pan??” Junmyeon repeats, though he has Yifan’s name wrong. His brows are furrowed under his red beanie.

“It’s _Yifan_ ,” Yifan corrects him.

“Ee-pan.”

“ _Yi. Fan._ ”

Junmyeon’s brows are still furrowed and now he crosses his arms. “Too difficult,” he groans. Three seconds after, he startles both Yifan and Changmin by saying, “Ah! I’ll call you Fanfan instead!”

Yifan almost chokes on his hot chocolate, and Changmin lets out another hearty laugh.

“What? You don’t like me calling you Fanfan?” Junmyeon asks, and Yifan sees an expression of a kicked, teary-eyed puppy on his face.

“N-no, no. Fanfan is good,” Yifan says, although it’s mostly out of guilt. But honestly, his heart seems to be doing somersaults inside his ribcage, dancing to the melody of Junmyeon pronouncing _Fanfan_.

Out of happiness, Junmyeon beams a smile so bright Yifan had to wince. His pout is no more. Yifan feels an air of relief coursing through his lungs.

“Then c-can I call you Myeonmyeon?” Yifan asks in turn, still feeling shy.

And to think Junmyeon’s smile couldn’t be any bigger and brighter than this.

“Haha,” Changmin chuckles, removing the blankets off Junmyeon’s shoulders, freeing the young boy from his makeshift thermal pack. “Glad to see you made another friend, Fanfan.”

“Myeonmyeon made a friend too!”

“Yes, yes, you too, Junmyeonnie,” Changmin says, removing the red beanie from Junmyeon’s head and consequently ruffling his hair. “You’re such a good boy.”

Warming his hands with his mug, Yifan finally asks the question that’s been bugging him since he woke up from his nap, “Why are you trying to build a snowman that is bigger than you?” It takes him a bit of effort with his broken Korean, but Junmyeon listens to him attentively and without ridicule.

“Because it’s a snowman,” Junmyeon promptly and proudly answers, not caring to explain to his new friend.

“Pardon?”

“Because it’s a snow- _man_ ,” Junmyeon says, emphasizing the last syllable. “And a snowman should be bigger than Myeonmyeon!”

“But can’t you just build a snowman that is as tiny as your hands?” Yifan asks, more like trying to convince Junmyeon out of his weird ideas.

“I want my snowman to be as big as Kyuhyun hyung!”

“Then you better grow as tall as Kyuhyun hyung, Junmyeon-ah,” a fourth voice enters the room. Yifan, Junmyeon and Changmin all turn their heads to the door, where they find Kyuhyun walking in while patting his hands on his apron.

“Unnn…” Junmyeon pouts again this time, “That would take me twenty years, hyung.”

Kyuhyun laughs, settling on the seat beside Changmin, and Yifan notices that his mug is blue with a kangaroo print while for Changmin, it’s a brown mug with a moose print. “Don’t worry, Junmyeon-ah. Hyung will wait for you then.”

“You better not go back on your word again, hyung,” Junmyeon protests through pouted lips.

Kyuhyun and Changmin both laugh. “Yes, Junmyeonnie. I promise,” Kyuhyun says.

 

* * *

 

Their day proceeds as warmly as their hot chocolate. Changmin assists Junmyeon and Yifan in washing their mugs and putting them away while Kyuhyun heads to the nursery to wake up the other children. Yifan learns that Junmyeon likes to play with the soap suds, ogling at every big bubble he gets to create.

They have a few reading lessons and after that it’s play time. Junmyeon mingles well with the kids, hopping from one group to another to play with them, all the while keeping his new friend Yifan by his side.

By the end of the day, the parents arrive to fetch their kids. One by one, their friends leave until it is only Junmyeon and Yifan left. As usual, Kyuhyun teaches Yifan more Korean words, even Junmyeon occasionally steps in to either help or bother them, and eventually Kyuhyun asks Changmin to hold him in place. Junmyeon doesn’t fight Changmin though, it’s as if he is deliberately causing trouble but intending no harm, giggling as he settles himself comfortably on his Changmin hyung’s lap.

It is a little after sunset when the chimes of the main door ring and Yifan sees his mother smiling as she steps in. She exchanges a few words with Kyuhyun and greets Changmin as she is meeting him for the first time.

“Bye bye, Fanfan!” Junmyeon says, waving at Yifan. There was a bit of sadness in his eyes, and the corners of his mouth droop a bit despite his smile.

Yifan feels a little bit sad leaving his friend behind. Reluctantly, he says, “Bye bye, Myeonmyeon!”

“Oh you made a new friend?” Yifan’s mother asks, to which Yifan responded with a quiet nod. Turning to Junmyeon, his mom waves, “Bye bye, Myeonmyeon!”

Junmyeon seems to have cheered up by this tiny gesture of acknowledgement. “Bye bye, Fanfan’s mommy!”

A smile blooms on the lips of Yifan’s mother, and his son awes at the magic caused by his friend. “Play lots and lots with Yifan, alright? See you tomorrow, Myeonmyeon!”

With that, she picks up Yifan’s hand and the two of them leave in good spirits. Yifan catches the too-bright smile on Junmyeon’s face through the slowly closing gap on the front door.

 

* * *

 

It is a good, cozy afternoon and the kids are busy in their playtime. Most of them are at the playground playing tag, while a few of them, Yifan included, have chosen to remain inside to play on their own.

Yifan is on his usual table, with his usual box of crayons coloring a not-so-usual page in his usual coloring book.

All is going well until Baekhyun stands beside him and points a finger at his coloring book. “Why is your sky pink?” he asks, curiosity glinting in his eyes.

Yifan’s heart begins to race. He wants to explain, but couldn’t find the words in Korean at that time.

“That’s weird,” Jongdae says. “Everybody knows the sky is blue.”

Yifan feels his legs going cold and his lips trembling. He wants to explain, but he doesn’t know how to say it in Korean and he doesn’t want the other kids to misunderstand.

“You guys!” Junmyeon raises his voice, with matching hand on his waist and a finger pointing at the two boys crowding around Yifan’s table. All heads are turned to him now. “If Fanfan wants his sky to be pink, then leave him alone!”

“We’re not bullying him!” Baekhyun defends, but his voice was a little strained and a bit raised. “We’re just asking!”

“Oh yeah? Looks to me like you’re making him cry!” Junmyeon says, approaching Baekhyun with sturdy strides.

It seems like a brawl is going to happen, and Yifan wants stop them before it starts, but he couldn’t feel his legs. Running out of options, he starts crying loudly.

“Now you made him cry!” Junmyeon shouts, reaching out to pull Baekhyun. But before he could even grab hold of Baekhyun’s shirt, a pair of arms lifts him up.

“Alright, alright,” Kyuhyun says, suppressing a flailing Junmyeon in his arms. “Junmyeon-ah, stop it.”

“But he made Fanfan cry!” Junmyeon protests.

“That’s no reason for you to pick a fight with Baekhyunnie,” Kyuhyun chides.

“We weren’t being mean with Yifan!” Baekhyun explains, defending himself.

“We were just asking him why his sky is colored pink and not blue!” Jongdae joins in. “Right, Yifan?”

Unable to utter a single word, Yifan nods while containing the sobs in his throat.

Kyuhyun sighs, putting down a calm but still pouting Junmyeon. “Alright, kids. No more fighting, okay? And Junmyeonnie, where’s your apology?”

“But why?”

“Why?” Kyuhyun rebounds his question. “You were picking a fight with Baekhyunnie and Jongdae and that scared Fanfan. Don’t you feel sorry?”

Junmyeon glances at Yifan and his furrowed eyebrows soften and his pout loosens. “I’m sorry,” he tells Baekhyun and Jongdae, while swinging his body left and right.

“That’s good,” Kyuhyun says, satisfied. He pats the children’s heads. “No more fighting, okay?”

They all nod sheepishly. Kyuhyun then turned to Yifan to check on his work. He studies it carefully, thumb under his chin. He tilts his head left and right, and finally says, “There must be something that Yifan has seen for the sky to be this pink. You know, boys, the world is too big and the sky is too wide for us to insist that the sky is always blue. I mean, it turns black at night, right?”

The four boys stare at Kyuhyun, awe sparkling like stars in their eyes. Kyuhyun can’t help chuckling at how adorable they look. “So do you understand?”

Turning to one another, the boys nod gleefully. “Pink is a beautiful color for the sky,” Kyuhyun comments. “I think I’d like to see that with you guys someday,” he adds, casting Junmyeon and Yifan a wink that Baekhyun and Jongdae didn’t manage to catch as they were busy mulling over the image of a pink sky. Yifan and Junmyeon grin at each other.

Suddenly, the Day Care’s phone rings. “Well then, I gotta answer that one,” Kyuhyun smiles, gesturing with his hands and then leaving the room. Baekhyun and Jongdae then seize this opportunity to leave, and they dash towards the playground, leaving Yifan and Junmyeon alone in the playroom.

Junmyeon slumps on the chair next to Yifan, then he scoots closer until he’s leaning on Yifan’s arm. Yifan picks up another crayon and resumes his work. After studying Yifan’s coloring piece for an entire minute, he says, “I might understand why Baekhyun and Jongdae asked why your sky is pink, but what are these hearts? Are they clouds?”

Yifan freezes, and the crayon on his hand rolls out of his grasp. Junmyeon looks up, and finds his friend with his eyes wide open in shock. It takes another second until the blush creeps up Yifan’s cheeks. “These… These are supposed to be birds…”

Junmyeon blinks. Yifan stares at him, anticipating a delayed reaction. Junmyeon blinks again. Junmyeon opens his mouth to say something but Yifan immediately blocks him by mumbling, “I don’t know how to draw birds!” Yifan closes his eyes.

A booming laughter echoes inside the room, but the source of it is a tiny boy clutching his tummy. “You’re so funny, Fanfan,” Junmyeon says, wiping the tears at the corner of his eyes.

“Don’t laugh,” Yifan says, pouting. He’s not angry at Junmyeon though, just sulking.

“Sorry, sorry,” Junmyeon says. “Would you like me to help you? It’s just as easy as writing the letter V!”

And so Yifan hands him his crayon. Junmyeon draws v-shaped birds on Yifan’s pink sky, and they look more proper than Yifan’s heart-shaped ones—this, Yifan admits. They both laugh at the differences; it seems like the birds were in love, with the hearts drawn in between.

 

* * *

 

On another fine winter afternoon, when all of the kids were cozy inside their sleeping blankets, Yifan happens to wake up and finds the blanket next to him—Junmyeon’s—empty and abandoned in a splendid mess that Yifan couldn’t help giggling at how it resembles its owner.

He gets up and makes his own bed and then Junmyeon’s before quietly leaving the room, cautious as not to wake up the other kids who are still sleeping. He finds Junmyeon in the pantry, his tiny hands being held gently by Kyuhyun as he listens attentively to the latter.

Kyuhyun is on his knees, talking with Junmyeon on his eye level. “Junmyeonnie, can you do me a favor?”

Junmyeon’s eyes widen in excitement, and Yifan swears he looks like a puppy with his ears perk up at his master’s call.

“Can you buy some stuff for me? Your Changmin hyung isn’t here yet but I couldn’t leave the other kids alone and you’re the only one I can trust,” he says.

Junmyeon flashes a bright smile and responds, “Yes, hyung! What is it? Myeonmyeon will be sure to do it!”

But before Kyuhyun could continue, he senses Yifan’s attention upon them, and so he calls out, “Oh, Fanfan’s awake?”

Yifan removes himself by the door and walks towards Kyuhyun and Junmyeon.

“How about you go with Fanfan? It’d be fun going to the mart together and then you can show him around,” Kyuhyun suggests.

Junmyeon’s round eyes sparkle like the glistening tree branches on their playground after the sun has melted the snow. “Can we really go together?” Junmyeon asks Kyuhyun, rocking his weight to the balls of his feet. Yifan's heart jumps at the sound of the word together.

“Of course you can,” Kyuhyun affirms, ruffling Junmyeon’s hair and then slipping mittens on the boy’s hands. Kyuhyun also gestures Yifan to scoot closer, wrapping a cozy scarf around his neck.

“Here is a list of the things you need to buy.”

Kyuhyun fishes out a note from the pocket of his apron. He gestures for Yifan to open his hands, and then places the note on the boy’s palms, entrusting the important task to him.

“And here is the money,” Kyuhyun adds, and Yifan is fascinated at the magic inside his apron pockets now. “I’ll place them in this wallet,” he demonstrates it in front of the kids, “then inside Junmyeonnie’s bag.”

The young man stands up. “Don’t forget about it, Junmyeonnie. And you, Yifan, make sure he doesn’t lower his guard. Remind him if he forgets.”

Junmyeon snorts at the last sentence and Yifan chuckles, raising his hand in a salute, “Roger, Sir!”

“Junmyeonnie knows the way to the mart, but you can take your time and stroll around. Just don’t go too far, alright? Come back before it gets too dark out.” Kyuhyun tells the two children.

Both of the boys give him their salute.

“Thanks, you guys. Let’s have some hot chocolate when you get back,” he adds, ruffling their heads once more before putting their beanies in place.

 

* * *

 

What Kyuhyun wanted them to do was quite simple: it’s just buying a few supplies like hot chocolate and milk powder and a few heating packs that are plenty enough to be assigned to each person in the Day Care Center.

Junmyeon holds Yifan’s hand during the entire walk towards the nearest mart. As always, he’s chatting about anything that catches his eyes, like the orange tabby cat over there leisurely napping on top of the tree stump by the local park. He says he once gave it a collar but the cat lost it the next day. He thinks the cat hates him, but he admits that he still likes the cat.

They pass by a red mail box and Junmyeon chirps about how he wrote a letter to Santa Claus last year. The little boy is still hoping that Santa received his letter. Curious, Yifan asks him what he wrote in that letter and Junmyeon answers in a sing-song voice, “It’s a secret!”

When they arrive at the mart, the lady at the counter greets them and the stress in her face fades away upon seeing Junmyeon entering the door. Junmyeon lets go of Yifan’s hand and runs towards the lady. It seems that they knew each other, seeing Junmyeon wrapping his arms around the lady and the lady lifting him up.

“Good afternoon, Junmyeonnie,” the mart lady says, pinching the little boy’s cheeks. “What brings you here with—” Yifan catches her look beyond the automatic doors of the mart as if there was someone there before resuming her sentence, “—your new friend? Hello there, I believe this is our first time meeting each other.” Yifan turns around to check but there is no one by the mart’s entrance.

“Auntie, his name is Fanfan!” Junmyeon introduces, and Yifan bows as a silent greeting. “He’s a new kid, and Kyuhyun hyung asked both of us to buy some stuff!”

“Oh, Kyuhyun has an errand for you guys? What is it?” The lady asks, and Yifan fetches the list from his bag and gives them to her, paper held carefully by both of his hands. After going through the list, the lady says, “You can find these things at the second aisle. The heat packs are at the last aisle.” She then puts Junmyeon down, and upon looking at both of the kids, she asks, “You think you can do this by yourselves?”

“Yes, ma’am!” Junmyeon says, raising his hand to his forehead in salute, to which Yifan meekly follows.

The mart lady chuckles, “Alright, I’ll be waiting at the counter when you’re done!”

And so the two boys scurry off to retrieve the items they were tasked with. Junmyeon, however, keeps getting distracted by the other items on sale that Yifan had to drag him far from them.

While they were at the last aisle counting the heat packs they needed, Yifan hears the mart lady greet a new customer. Their business is quick though, because by the time Junmyeon and Yifan were done getting what they needed, the customer has already left.

“Is this all that we need?” Junmyeon asks, urging Yifan to double-check the items in their basket. Yifan nods, “I think everything’s complete now.”

“Alright, let’s go back to Auntie, Fanfan!” Junmyeon declares, dragging his side of the basket back to the counter, his feet as spritely as ever. Yifan tries hard not to stumble in his tracks.

“All done?” The mart lady asks, as Junmyeon places their basket by the counter. Yifan nods, and observes the lady swipe their items against a scanner. She then announces the amount they have to pay, and Junmyeon rummages in his bag to retrieve his wallet, takes out a paper bill and hands it over to her. She pushes a few buttons and the register opens and then she gives Junmyeon his change. Junmyeon has his wallet open and so the lady drops the coins inside.

The lady then removes herself from the counter and bends down until she’s on eye level with the two boys. “Junmyeonnie, Fanfan, here you go,” she says, giving each of them a cream-colored plastic bottle. Yifan is not adept enough in reading hangul but it seems like she gave them some kind of milk.

“Myeonmyeon, what is this?” Yifan asks, eyes studying the plastic bottle curiously.

Junmyeon smiles at him. “It’s called a banana milk,” he answers. Sliding his fingers at the label, he pronounces the letters slowly, “This is read as _ba-na-na-milk_.”

Turning to the mart lady, Junmyeon says, “But auntie, we didn’t pay for these.”

The lady chuckles, “It’s fine, Junmyeonnie. Your hyung paid it in advance.”

Junmyeon looks confused now. “Which hyung?”

“Hmmm,” the lady hums, “I wonder about that. Why don’t we sit down over there while you drink your banana milk?”

The lady leads them to a vacant table near the entrance of the mart. Junmyeon and Yifan sit beside each other while she sits opposite them. Junmyeon helps his friend punch a straw into his banana milk and he has this eager expression on as Yifan tastes it for the first time.

“How is it?” the mart lady asks.

“It’s delicious!” Yifan exclaims, happy at the sweetness on his tongue. Junmyeon beside him is beaming with pride.

“Of course! It’s Myeonmyeon’s favorite after all,” Junmyeon says, tilting his chin at a slightly higher angle.

They talk for a long while until the kids finish their banana milk. After that they wave the mart lady goodbye and start walking their way back to the Day Care Center. Yifan’s hand is being held firmly by Junmyeon, their steps were small but their pace was steady. Junmyeon is singing a Christmas song, and Yifan understands only a portion of the lyrics, but he can tell that Junmyeon is doing his best and is having fun. He swings their hands along to the tune. Eventually, Yifan finds himself humming to Junmyeon’s song.

All of a sudden. Junmyeon stops in his tracks, and Yifan almost topples over if not for his long legs.

“Ah!” Junmyeon exclaims. “I get it now!”

“You get what?”

“I get it now!” Junmyeon repeats.

“Get what?”

Junmyeon points a finger towards the sky. “Your pink sky! Fanfan, your pink sky is real after all!”

Yifan looks up, and sees the sunset colors sprawled over the wide sky. The pink is not the same pink he had on his coloring book. It is washed with swirls of orange and the clouds bear tinges of purple, but the pink is there, like paint splashed over a canvas. Pride swells inside him. “Of course, Myeonmyeon.”

“So this is the pink sky you wanted to draw. It’s beautiful.” The relief that washes Yifan’s chest is warm.

“And…” Junmyeon squints. “Those birds could indeed pass for flying hearts.”

“Hey, quit it!” Yifan, embarrassed, raises his voice. Junmyeon only laughs heartily as Yifan blushes, but he quickly dismisses it with a smile. And Yifan squeezes Junmyeon’s hand as he pulls him, small feet alternating forward, heading back to their Day Care Center.

Warm pink color alights the sky, and on the snow-covered ground, two trails of children’s boot prints, side by side, progress forward.

 

* * *

 

“You bought them banana milk?” Kyuhyun asks, tucking the sleeping Junmyeon and Yifan under their blankets. The other children have already gone home, and the two best friends fell asleep shortly after they had their hot chocolate. Kyuhyun lets this slide because after all, they did his errand for him.

“Hmm, yeah,” Changmin responds, placing his arm over Kyuhyun’s shoulders. They watch both of the kids fondly. “Didn’t expect for you to send them out to do shopping.”

“And you knew I’d catch them on the way here, huh.”

“Haha. Thank you for looking after them, Changmin.”

“Hmm… And they did well for their first errand.”

“Makes you feel proud, eh?”

“Can’t deny that.”

Half an hour later, Yifan’s mother arrives and finds Yifan holding Junmyeon’s hand, both of them still asleep beside each other.


End file.
